ZUtA demos its mobile robotic printer

Small enough to fit into the palm of your hand, the four-inch wireless device makes it easy to produce images on the go.

The printer rolls back and forth over a piece of paper, until the on-screen image is recreated in about a minute. The ZUtA Robotic Printer integrates with an app, which enables it to print what you see on your phone.

TechCrunch spoke to CEO and founder Tuvia Elbaum in Jerusalem, at ZUtA’s research lab. We also got a demonstration of the printer in action, which you can watch in the above video.

People “want to be able to print wherever they are,” said Elbaum. “Even if they are in the office, they are still working from their laptop or their smartphone.”

Yet the accessibility of smartphones and efforts to go-green have made it less en vogue to print things out. Elbaum said that while they are aware of this, he still believes there are a variety of use cases for this product.

Elbaum thinks that photos, packaging labels and event tickets are amongst the use cases for the ZUtA printer. He says that ultimately developers will be able to create apps that are compatible with the printer. Since it is remote-controlled, they have heard from people who are interested in creating games and art tutorials.

The battery just lasts about an hour, but it is rechargeable via a micro USB. It is compatible with Android, iOS and Windows.

One ink cartridge can print about 100 pages. Right now, it’s only black-and-white, but they hope to add color printing someday.

The device is expected be available this December and will retail for $299. (Kickstarter backers will get the ZUtA printer for $199).